This book started its life in 1987, as a series of articles on musician’s injuries for “Senza Sordino”, the newsletter of the International Conference of Symphony and Opera Musicians(ICSOM).

By 1991, these articles had been expanded and organized into a book, published by MMB Music and ICSOM and edited by Debbie Torch. The book was translated into Japanese in 1992. The book went out of print in the late 1990’s when MMB discontinued their book publishing business.

In 2010-2011 the book was digitized, re-edited and updated for a second edition to be published as an e-book with the advantages of immediate receipt, low environmental impact, the addition of hyperlinks and low cost. The original MSM sold for $20 in 1992.